US EditionLA wildfire victims building ADUs as first step in home rebuilding process
LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CALIFORNIA, JUL 20 – More than 250 wildfire victims have applied for accessory dwelling unit permits to speed housing recovery amid insurance shortfalls and permit delays, officials said.
- More than 250 Los Angeles County residents who lost homes in January 2025 wildfires have applied for accessory dwelling unit permits to begin rebuilding.
- The applications follow Governor Gavin Newsom’s executive orders signed in January that suspended environmental rules and streamlined ADU approvals to accelerate reconstruction.
- Affected homeowners are using ADUs ranging from 244 to 1,200 square feet as temporary or interim housing while planning or financing their main home rebuilds.
- David Hertz, a Santa Monica architect, explained that many clients face insurance challenges, and one homeowner said, “I'm definitely thinking we’re going to build an ADU.”
- This surge in ADU construction aims to provide affordable, faster housing solutions, but persistent insurance gaps and economic pressures risk displacing vulnerable residents in fire-affected zones.
15 Articles
15 Articles
On January 6, the districts of Altadena and Pacific Palisades in Los Angeles went in smoke. Six months later, while the majority of the land had been cleared, it was time for the major decisions: should we rebuild or leave?
Marin Independent Journal
The Mercury newsCalifornia is so eager for homeowners to build ADUs, it’s helping them save on architect fees
In California, thanks to a number of state-level interventions in recent years, building an accessory dwelling unit, or ADU, is easier than ever. Still, construction projects, even of a tiny home, are a major undertaking for the average homeowner. Before lining up contractors and breaking ground, a property owner might spend thousands of dollars and wait weeks just to get architectural plans drafted and approved by a local permitting agency. Now…
Climate change pushes Black Altadena families toward foreclosure and displacement
Six months after a wildfire tore through Altadena in Southern California, dozens of Black families are now at risk of losing their homes as insurance gaps, expired moratoriums, and corporate buyers fuel a wave of post-disaster foreclosures.Adam Mahoney reports for Capital B News.In short:More than half of the Eaton Fire-damaged homes in pre-foreclosure belong to Black families, despite Black residents making up less than 20% of Altadena’s popula…
They couldn't afford to buy a house in L.A. Could they build one themselves in their budget?
Like the simple architecture of Sea Ranch in Northern California, which connects to the landscape, Los Angeles architect Lindsay Sheron designed a two-story house that “blends into the hill.”
LA Daily News
LA wildfire victims building ADUs as first step in home rebuilding process
Woefully underinsured, an Altadena retiree ponders building a tiny house at the back of his yard to replace the three-bedroom home he lost in the January firestorms. His insurance would pay, at most, just a third of the cost to replace the 78-year-old house he shared for almost three decades with his wife. The only way to get back home and preserve the generational wealth he’s created for his heirs could be a casita or a granny flat, or as city …
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